Spirit Without
by Pororing
Summary: He thought he dealt with those fears; he thought he conquered them and came to terms with his past...yet he can't erase the fact that there are some people who will never forgive his atrocities...even if he's trying to help them.
1. Back to Basics

**A/N: Hey guys! Pororing here with a GX fanfic for you! I doubt I'd have a lot of duels in this one (or any at all) but that will be justified. I will try my best to have this story as close to canon as possible, with OCs that are NOT Mary Sues and won't hog the spotlight. Even though I finished GX including Season 4, I only followed it with the dub, not the subs (I was like 10 by the time I had an urge to watch the series again, and I DID watch it eventually in subs thanks to S4) so I had to be very careful with myself in this one since the dub sort of butchered the canon plot, ha ha. Please point out any errors in canon in the reviews. Hope you guys enjoy!**

_**Back to Basics**_

"_Yuki Judai…how long was it since we last once met?"_

_From the looming shadows, emerged a tall and foreboding dragon with its bat-like wings outstretched, a pair of long, white horns, and a body of shining, black scales. Its golden eyes stared at the boy menacingly, striking the unusual sense of fear into the boy. "You look frightened." The dragon sneered. "I don't think you remember me at all."_

"_You…but how…?" Judai rasped._

"_An idiotic boy like is unfit to bear the title of Herald of Darkness." The dragon growled, ignoring Judai's question. "It's best for you to die, don't you think? You already done so much for both the humans and the Duel Spirits, it's best for you to rest…"_

_The dragon stretched out his black wings, while unleashing a fearsome roar that not only shook the earth but cracked it too, unleashing tongues of flames that circled around the duo, while the dragon continued to laugh uproariously like a madman as the flames grew, until it became tall enough to block out the dragon. The only thing that carried through the flames was the dragon's last sentence, which was, "__**Die Yuki Judai! Perish in these flames! Die knowing that you failed! Die knowing that it is YOUR fault that the world will be DOOMED!"**_

Immediately, Judai jolted from his slumber, with a look of horror frozen on his face. For awhile, the world around him blurred and he heard a flurry of noises, with the dragon's last words remaining ever loud in his head continuously mocking and haunting him like a ghost. He blinked, and then the voice ceased. The only thing he heard was the loud blare of a horn. After a few moments, Judai remembered why exactly he was here…the night before, he had snuck into a ship bound to Japan while its men were too busy cursing each other out and loading baggage and merely rested in the lazaret. A stream of light snuck through the dark, cluttered room, indicating a person was near. Swiftly, Judai hid himself behind one of the crates.

In all honesty, Judai had no reason to return to Japan. He had done his job in defending the world from Darkness, and now there was nothing left to do but to put his powers to good use by traveling the world. Other than the fiasco with that odd man named Paradox who wanted to destroy the timeline, there was a long and awkward period of peace. Yet then there was a strange phenomenon concerning the Duel Monsters cards – they were slowly fading away, leaving nothing more than blank, white spaces where the cards used to be. It wasn't like the work of a madman such as Paradox, since such a phenomenon was already reaching the news by the time Judai heard about it, and his era seemed to be safe.

Soon, Judai found his own cards disappearing – from his E-Heroes, to his Neo-Spacians, and up to his own treasured card, _Yubel herself. _There was no warning of her disappearing, or any sort of omen that hinted in this; it seemed that even Yubel was not safe in this strange event, even if she was fused within him. Following this, Judai found himself dreaming the same dream over and over again – a bipedal, black, and golden-eyed dragon that continuously taunted him and presumably killing him with violent flames. Somehow, this dream as well as the current string of events was connected in some odd reason. In conclusion, Judai decided that there was a new and treacherous foe in the midst, and that he might as well be waiting in the Academia, seeing as how the school attracted all sorts of events from the Sacred Beasts to the all-powerful Darkness.

Light eventually flooded the storage room, and Judai heard heavy footsteps and the low grumbling of men. One by one, they began carrying out the crates, grunting and making comments as they began to unload each crate. Judai knew that he needed to escape the ship, yet his mind was blank on exactly _how _he was to escape. Yet there was no other choice; he had to at least try to escape or else he would have to endure the wrath of the ship's men. Swiftly, he darted past each crate and baggage, hiding whenever some of the men came near. Slowly the light grew nearer and larger until Judai finally found himself out of the dark and musty lazaret.

The sun had barely risen by the time the cargo ship had docked in Japan. The sky was still dotted with stars and yet far overhead, the sun was beginning to rise. Usually, docks would be noisy but at this time of day, it was unusually silent. Far off, little dots that were probably other cargo ships were nearing the docks, and the loud blare of horns slowly filling the sky. For some reason, fear was creeping up within Judai, and he knew he had to reach the Academia soon…which was an emotion that Judai was used to feeling.

* * *

><p>In Neo Domino City, crowds of kids were already filling card shops, holding up blank pieces of paper that used to be cards. A flurry of screams crowded the little store as the kids fumbled and wondered why their precious cards suddenly turned blank. From the rooftop of a building, Judai stared down on the commotion. It seemed that already the phenomenon had reached Japan, and possibly the Academia. Yet why? There was nobody that Judai knew of that knows fully well what's happening, perhaps Johan yet he was far from here and would have conducted his own search already before Judai even had a chance to hear about such an incident.<p>

"_Stupid humans…how can they be so naïve?"_

Judai lifted up his head, turning away from the scene. That voice…certainly, it wasn't Yubel's for the voice was much more energetic and younger, and it had a mystical feel to it, much like Winged Kuriboh's or Ruby Carbuncle's. Was it possible that a Duel Spirit could be in the midst? Slowly, Judai turned his attention away from the commotion and towards the direction of the voice. Even if the voice belonged to a Duel Spirit, it certainly didn't seem ready to accompany nor trust him.

He walked past buildings, and crowds of confused kids holding blank cards, with his duffel bag slung over his shoulder. He scanned past each building, and each person, hoping to see a beast of some sort, but he saw nothing. Perhaps the voice was just a hallucination. Maybe it was just the heart getting to him or his mind playing games with him. Yet it seemed that it wasn't like that; from the corner of his eye, Judai saw a beast; a tiny, white, and four-winged dragon with a pair of yellow eyes in a glowering stance towards the crowd, peeking out from an alley. _"Humans disgust me to no ends…why was I even chosen to enter this world? Why not someone else?" _It growled to itself.

Judai's face lit up. That was _exactly _the same voice he had heard! Immediately, he ran towards the alley, where the dragon seemed to be located. "Hey!" He cried out. "Hey, you!"

The dragon lifted up its head, its eyes livid with the apparent reason that somebody – a _human _to be exact, was able to see it. _"What do _you _want?" _It hissed. _"Humans with the ability to see Spirits like me aren't that exciting to see, you know."_

"Well, _sorry._" Judai replied. "Wait, how come _you _aren't affected by this? Shouldn't you have disappeared like the others, too?"

For awhile, the dragon became merely curious, losing his antagonism towards Judai. Then, it stared at the Duel Disk that was strapped on to Judai's right arm, and immediately it hissed at him. _"You're just like everybody else I see here! A stupid, no-good duelist!" _It bellowed. _"You people bet entire lives on my kind! I suppose none of you know hand-to-hand combat or any of the like, do you? This is exactly why I detest your kind!"_

Suddenly, the dragon leapt at Judai with a tiny screech. It hissed and scratched at Judai, constantly clawing at the Duel Disk and biting at it. Judai tried his best to swat the dragon, yet it continued to cling on to the boy, hissing and growling, until it finally loosened its grip and let go of the Duel Disk, sending it crashing towards the ground. "Why are you so hateful towards me?" Judai asked. "There's nothing wrong with being a duelist!"

"_Nothing wrong? Of course someone with your intellect can easily say that!" _The dragon spat. _"My kind live under constant oppression and when we die, the only thing we can look forward to is our souls being reincarnated as cards that humans like you abuse to no end!"_

"That's not true!" Judai told the dragon. "We don't abuse your kind! We duelists care for you! In fact, some of the Spirits that you call 'your kind' actually _trust _us!"

"_Those are nothing more than foolish cretins, young boy!"_

"Please trust me! Is there any way I can possibly get that through your head!"

"_There is no need! Perhaps the Spirits back at the Vanguard Faction have lost their mind, but I will certainly knock a little sense back into them for wanting to put their faith in a stupid human!"_

Spirits? Vanguard Faction? Already it seemed too much for Judai, and while his mind continued to fumble on what the dragon might actually be saying, he found himself wrapped in a flurry of tiny scratches; a rather awkward attack for a creature that was supposed to be feared by most. The scratches didn't manage to blur Judai's vision, as he was able to take hold of the dragon's tail, stopping it from its attack. _"Let go of me!" _The dragon roared. _"Why is it that you continue to pressure me so!"_

"I only asked for one thing!" Judai cried. "You're a Spirit, aren't you? Then you probably know what's happening around here! Please, just tell me why all of the cards are disappearing!"

Finally, the dragon stopped squirming and once again grew curious. _"Your tone of voice…you seem to be quite desperate, are you?" _It asked. _"As selfless as it is, it seems you're in this for…truly personal reasons, hm? Not just for the wellbeing of our two kinds?"_

Judai remained mute. He stared at the dragon's eyes, as he began to loosen his grip on its tail. _"Ah, it seems I took some words right out of your mouth." _It chuckled. _"You're different from them – if you would kindly release me, I can shed some light on what exactly is happening."_

"How would I know that you won't escape?" Judai asked suddenly, tightening his grip further.

"_A Spirit keeps its word." _The dragon replied. _"I remarked that your different from your kind, did I not? It means that I trust you to some extent."_

Judai glared at the dragon. Considering the dragon's behavior from before, from insulting humans to outright attacking him, it could be merely trying to outsmart him. Yet what other choice did he have? This dragon…it either held the key to figuring out this whole conundrum, or it could have just been playing with him all along. He could never find out unless he tried. Slowly, Judai loosened his grip on the dragon's tail, until he finally let go, dropping the Spirit onto the ground.

The dragon dusted itself, and stared at Judai curiously, then looked up at the sky. Then, it shook its head. _"In a place like this, we could have attracted some attention." _It finally said. _"It's best we find somewhere else safe, perhaps somewhere…private, where other humans won't find us." _Then, it took off, with Judai tagging along right behind it.

The dragon continued to soar past the crowds and buildings, going on an unpredictable routine of it stopping and looking around and just shaking its head before it took off once again. It almost seemed that the dragon was being a prankster and did not live up to its end of the bargain, until the duo reached a little cottage, whose teal paint was chipping off overtime and its windows and door being barricaded by long planks of wood. Grinning, the dragon flew up to the roof where it rested, followed by Judai. "Looks like this place is good enough for you." He said. "Mind telling me what's going on now?"

The dragon remained silent, gazing down on the roof's red painting before it raised its head, its livid gaze turning into a worried one. _"You searched for answers…and now I am ready to supply you with them to my best ability." _It whispered. _"I hail from the Dark World, where we enjoyed a slight period of peace since the tyrannical Haou was defeated…yet that peace was quickly disturbed by several upbringings from a far more terrifying enemy…"_

**A/N: And there you have the first chapter! I will see you guys later whenever my fanfic muse decides to give me more ideas!**


	2. Foe in the Academia

**A/N: Hello people! The second chapter is here, and with an obligatory author's note to start, hur hur. Anyway, yeah, upon looking back at the first chapter and your reviews, I can agree that Judai is OOC in a way that he just brushed off Yubel in favor of other things. That was just meant to be a flashback-ish thing that says how he got here in the first place, but I'll still try to keep him in character though. Yeah, Duel Monsters actually duel in the Dark World arc, it slipped off of my mind when I was writing, so thanks for pointing that out. Thanks for pointing that out guys!**

**Foe in the Academia**

"…_the foe's name was Abyros." _The dragon continued. _"However, not a lot of Spirits viewed him as a threat; he stirred them into his side with the use of his own followers who claimed that he came with good tidings. While Abyros was busy winning approval, his followers, known as the Spirit Hymn, were busy running around the Spirit World tainting it through strange shards that they call Prisms. It was something they crafted themselves using dark energy, I believe. They scattered these Prisms around the realm, tainting the land and turning the Spirits who lived there into hostile creatures. However, Abyros spread out the news that the Prisms were the work of another foe, masking himself in good publicity. Not all of those Spirits fell for his lies, such as me. We realized that the Prisms had begun gathering too much energy, to the point that it had began devouring Spirits themselves to gain more power and apparently, it's not limited to my own realm."_

"What about that faction you were talking about?" Judai asked.

"_Ah, of course, the Vanguard Faction." _The dragon said. _"They were mostly made up of the Spirits who detested Abyros and knew that the Prisms caused much more chaos than the he described. We dedicated our work into scouring out the realm for Prisms, yet those few who actually found the shards disappeared mysteriously or ended up devoured by the Prisms themselves. For some reason, our leader still hasn't given up the operation, and those who questioned him ended up being tortured through…strange measures."_

"Strange measures…?"

"_Human, please! Don't. Even. Say. It."_

So it seemed that according to this strange dragon, the Prisms were the source of the disappearances, which meant that one of these Prisms held Yubel…the very thought of her being tortured to no ends within the Prism drove him mad, since he had already caused her pain because of his actions as a child, he couldn't risk for it to happen again. "So why are you here?" Judai asked, in a desperate attempt to chase away the thoughts.

"_Abyros came here to collect more energy for another Prism." _The dragon replied. _"I was told it would be somewhere here…"_

"Care to be specific?"

"_Hmm…I believe that one of the members told me that Abyros should be located in a dome on an island…which is why I'm here. Just got sidetracked, that's all."_

"Oh, that's the Academia! That's where I was going, too!"

The dragon blinked. _"Well then, may I tag along?" _It asked.

"Well, sure." Judai replied. "By the way, what's your name?"

"_Perhaps you can call me…Hoshiro." _The dragon said. _"And what about you?"_

"My name's Yuki Judai!" The brunette answered.

"_Yuki Judai…I believe I heard that name before…"_

* * *

><p>The skiff slid to a halt as the duo reached the familiar, white sands of the Academia. It was eerily silent, as compared to usual noise Judai was accustomed to hearing during his four years in the Academia. Was it possible that Abyros used the Academia's students for the Prism? Or maybe the students are just all mad and confused about the blank cards and rushed straight to the card shop? Judai hoped to his heart that the latter would be true, as Hoshiro didn't quite specify what <em>kind <em>of energy that Abyros needed. Then again, Judai had no idea what exactly _was _the Academia's current situation since this kind of silence could also mean that there's no trouble. _"According to some of my colleagues back at the Spirit World," _said Hoshiro, _"Abyros would be most likely be at a place where the energy is most concentrated for his Prism…"_

To tell the truth, Judai wasn't listening. At all. His mind was too focused on the fact that Yubel is concerned in all of this. Didn't he fuse with her? It should have granted her some kind of immunity, but no, here he was, trying to save her…

"…_er…Judai…?"_

…not only was Yubel involved in all of this, but also his friends. That seemed to be some sort of bad combination. Look what happened when his friends tagged along with him to the Spirit World; lots of bad things happened. _Lots. _Then again, the only difference back then was that Yubel was the antagonist. Right now, she was reformed and sealed away in one of those Prisms. Judai knew that he had to put his faith into Hoshiro, if he wanted to see her again…

"…_JUDAI!"_

Suddenly, Judai blinked back to reality, and found himself facing the livid face of Hoshiro, who seemed to be irritated to no ends. _"You know Judai; I mentioned back at the mainland how this fight was personal to you." _The dragon growled. _"Whatever you're fighting for, you aren't getting it unless we cooperate. Got it? Trust me, I don't want to work with you but even without you interfering, I would have been forced to bring back a human anyway!"_

"Don't be so mean, Hoshiro." Judai laughed. How was he even managing to fake such a laugh in a dire situation like this? "You can just repeat it to me nicely…"

Hoshiro merely glared at him. Then, he lifted up his head towards the sky, seemingly begging for some kind of disaster to free him from the idiot that stood before him, and then looked back at Judai with a very obvious forced grin, due its rather large shap. _"Alright Judai, let's go with your way." _He said through gritted teeth. _"I was just asking you where the Academia was."_

"Right up this path." Judai replied blissfully, while pointing to path to his left. "We should reach the front of the Academia in no time."

"_I'll be appeased once I see it." _Hoshiro mumbled under his breath. This boy…he absolutely _knew _this boy had a far greater reason on exactly why he was so interested in the Prisms. As they passed through numerous rows of the same trees except with darker tints of green, Hoshiro began to gorge himself into the thought of this anomaly right in front of him; the anomaly known as Yuki Judai. The boy's name was famous across the Spirit World because of his strong bonds with the Spirits themselves, and was the same exact human that the Vanguard Faction told Hoshiro to find. Yet most people are often remembered for their good deeds rather than their atrocities, correct? He also knew that Judai bore a striking resemblance to that vicious Haou, and certainly, other Spirits would also see it too.

So what if Judai was the key to their downfall? Hoshiro thought to himself. Abyros, for one, would notice this resemblance and would use it as a way to manipulate the Spirits even more, and gather more members into that stupid cult of his. No, he shouldn't even think about it. If Judai can (strangely) shrug off the fact that he resembled Haou-or perhaps even worse-_Haou himself_, then Hoshiro had no reason to fear…yet Judai is also some sort of anomaly (to the dragon anyway) so perhaps it's okay for him to remain suspicious about the boy.

Suddenly, Judai froze in his steps as if he saw some kind of ghost. _"Judai? What's wrong?" _Hoshiro asked. Suddenly, a faint sound rasped through the dragon's ears. It sounded like…a roar…then…_screams. _

"Could _that _be the Abyros you're talking about?" Judai asked.

Hoshiro nodded. _"That moron must have gone insane!" _He declared. _"He must be using a Prism to terrorize your friends!"_

"Then why are we need to get there fast!" Judai cried out. "We have to stop him!" Without even a chance to make a simple gesture of agreement or such, Judai began to sprint towards the Academia. Hoshiro simply grinned to himself; he was right. Judai _is _an anomaly. Passionate and mysterious…at least that was the personality he gave off to the dragon.

* * *

><p>"<em>Mama-mia!"<em>

One by one, students, led by Kenzan, tried their best to block the door leading to their classroom. Others who were too terrified shivered and held each other closely, trying their best to hide themselves. Without cards, the students or teachers had no way to defend themselves against that dragon that was roaming around the school. It carried around a diamond shard with a dazzling green color, which it claimed was the ultimate key to its dominance, according to some students who overheard the dragon. Then, the monster began cornering students putting them into trances and eventually using the shard to steal their soul. One by one, Chronos started seeing students, frozen in a state of terror, and with pale white skin, lying out in the open.

_Thump! Thump!_

Immediately, the remaining students tried their best to stifle their shrieks and shivered even more. Kenzan casted out a nod to Chronos, and the teacher took it as a sign the Ra Yellow had successfully barricaded the door. Chronos began looking over each student and saw that someone wasn't there. He looked around, thinking it was only a miscount, before a name suddenly flared up in his mind. _Rei! _She must have still been fighting against the dragon, he concluded. With that thought, the teacher walked up towards the barricaded door, only to be stopped by Kenzan. "It's dangerous out there, Chronos-sensei!" The boy said. "That dragon's too powerful!"

"But one of my students is out there!" Chronos proclaimed. "I demand that you let me out there!"

"Chronos-sensei!" Kenzan protested.

"I'm your teacher!" Chronos retorted. "It's best that you lead the other students to safety!"

There was a silent pause between the two, before Kenzan finally nodded. He motioned the group of students to follow him, and gestured to a few to take down the makeshift barricade, which was made up of a group of cringing Obelisk students. When Kenzan successfully left the classroom, Chronos found himself working up the courage to walk out of the dim room and into the hallway, where he found Rei constantly swatting and kicking the dragon. Its emerald eyes flashed a tint of amethyst, and the girl immediately stopped her attacks. With a deep breath, the teacher clutched his fists and readied himself to take down the titan that dared to harm his students. "STOP THAT!" Chronos cried out triumphantly.

The amethyst shade reverted back to its original emerald, releasing Rei from its hold. The Osiris girl glanced at Chronos, nodding towards him as a sign of thanks, before running off. _**"You shouldn't meddle with the affairs of dragons, human." **_It sneered, without even taking a slight glance at the human that dared to stop it. _**"I do applaud you trying your honest best to sacrifice yourself for that girl."**_

"Nobody hurts my students!" Chronos declared. "You'll have to kill me first!"

"_**Even when defenseless, you manage to stand up and defend the weak." **_The dragon jeered. It turned around to face Chronos, revealing the large, smirking face that served as its belly, and its head, which was mostly covered up by silver horns of varying shades. _**"I think it's more fun to play around with you for a bit…you know, crush your willpower before I could take your soul away."**_

Just as Chronos prepared to strike against the pitch-black behemoth, he saw a dragon, leap towards the titan and claw at its face repeatedly. The dragon was quite smaller and instead of black scales, it had shining white ones, as well as a set of four angelic wings compared to the behemoth's two tattered wings. _"Oh, you can save your banter for a later time, Abyros!" _It said. _"I won't let you put a single claw on Yuki Judai's allies!"_

Chronos blinked. Did that dragon…just mention…that slacker's name?

"Chronos-sensei!" A familiar voice cried. "Are you okay!"

When he spun around, it delighted Chronos that Judai was there, running towards him. "I was hoping you would come much sooner, Judai." He hissed. "But then again, you _do _have the blood of a slacker…"

Judai found it in his heart to merely laugh at the 'greeting.' He then lifted up his head to face the dragon before him. So this was Abyros…he vaguely reassembled the dragon that haunted Judai, yet the boy didn't seem too worried. He was more interested in the Prism that Abyros held. Was there a chance that the Prism Abyros held had Yubel within it? There was no time to fret over that. Judai _knew _that Yubel was within it, yet how should he know? He couldn't sense her, but it was certainly best that he found out for himself. "Chronos-sensei," Judai told Chronos, "I think you should leave this to me and my new pal."

"Absolutely not! What if this dragon-"

"Don't worry too much about me. You still have other students to look after right?"

"I do…but _please, _stay safe Judai."

"Of course I will!"

Chronos then ran off, slowly disappearing into the hallway. He was that kind of teacher who can absolutely loathe someone, yet still protect that someone no matter what. Someone like him would have been a nice person to aid Hoshiro and him, yet Judai was more interested in getting that Prism himself and freeing Yubel…without hurting someone close to him such as a friend in the process. By the time he had advanced towards Abyros, the dragon had knocked off Hoshiro to the side, rendering the Spirit unconscious, having hit himself against a wall. _**"You seem to be a…'special' kind of human." **_The dragon commented when he saw Judai. _**"It delights me to see Hoshiro has a sense of finding the right people to help out the 'cause.'"**_

"Where's Yubel." Judai said bluntly. There was no use sugarcoating things. Hoshiro (somewhat) knew his purpose, and if he _did _continue to brush this away, he would end up committing much more greater crimes in the future…all for the sake of one thing.

"_**I'll assume that she is some kind of Duel Spirit, correct?" **_Abyros asked. _**"Why are you so determined, human? She would have been…dead for all I know."**_

"Don't say such things!" Judai cried out. "Yubel's not dead! She won't give in that easily!"

Abyros smirked. He slowly reached out for the gem that Hoshiro had knocked out during their battle. _**"I suppose Hoshiro told you about this." **_ Abyros said, holding out the gem towards the boy. _**"If you truly seek her, then why don't you look in the Prism?"**_

"_That's a lie! Judai! He's telling lies!" _Hoshiro screamed. Judai turned towards the Spirit, who had already regained his consciousness. Scratches covered up most of his body, yet Hoshiro managed to summon up a scream using a hoarse tone.

What choice did he have left? Judai absolutely needed to find Yubel. No matter what. With his own will, he stared into the Prism, and he felt a strange sensation…it was as if his soul was leaving his body. Hoshiro's screams dulled away, and his vision blurred. Judai tried his best to fight back, yet he already heard the sound of a dull _thud! _and a throbbing pain in his mind seemed to take over him. Soon, he saw nothing more than blackness.

_When Judai woke up, he found himself floating in an odd space filled with colors intermixed with one another. At first, he thought that maybe it was just a rift in time or something of the likes, but then he remembered the Academia, the Spirits, Hoshiro, Abyros, and the Prism…that was it! This must have been the work of the Prism! Is it possible that he was…dead? He remembered Hoshiro said something along the lines of a Prism being able to devour a Spirit, so why wouldn't it do the same to him?_

"_Judai!"_

_Judai's ears perked up. That voice…! He knew that voice well…it was…Yubel's! He felt his heart beat heavily at the very thought of him being able to find Yubel so easily. "Yubel!" He cried out to the space of mixed colors. There was silence for a while. He couldn't be hallucinating. That voice felt so real, he doubted that it could be some sort of hallucination. "Yubel! Answer me back!" He cried out. "Please!"_

_A tiny light peeked out in front of him, blinding his vision. "Judai!" The same voice cried out._

"_You're alive!" Judai cried out joyously. "But Yubel…where are you?"_

"_I'm right here! Right in front of you!"_

_Right in front…? This light…maybe that was Yubel? Judai slowly made his way towards the light, yet every step he made, it seemed to only distance himself from the light. With no choice left, Judai extended out his arm in a frail attempt to reach out to the light…to reunite himself with Yubel…yet a strange feeling crept up his spine, an emotion called fear. Why was this? Judai himself wasn't so sure. Then, he felt a sharp pain towards his back, as if he was stabbed._

_Judai turned around, to see the source of this pain, and he saw a strange figure reassembling Yubel…but its body was made of a strange purple mist, and its eyes were empty, and glowed with ominously. It wore a huge grin when it saw the boy's look of horror. "Isn't this what you wanted, Judai?" The creature asked in a high pitched voice that made Judai's blood curl. "I'm right here, just like you wanted…"_

"_No! You're not Yubel!" Judai cried out. "Stop it! Stop it, please!"_

_The creature now cackled with glee, as it seemingly slipped its arm even deeper into Judai's back, making the pain grow worse. The boy kept reassuring himself that this was an illusion; a trick. Anger and frustration clouded his mind as he struggled to keep a firm grip on reality. He can never forgive that Abyros, especially after that monster had the nerve to toy with his mind. The pain soon became unbearable, and Judai let out an unexpected scream, much to the creature's glee._

"_JUDAI! ABYROS IS DECEIVING YOU!"_

_That scream…Hoshiro! The light in front of Judai widened, basking the strange rift in white, and blinding Judai. He heard the creature scream with agony as the light grew brighter and brighter…_

Judai found himself snapped back into reality, back into the Academia where Hoshiro and he were still fighting against Abyros. The boy turned around to see a wounded Hoshiro still fighting to his last, wounds visible on his body. Judai then lunged towards Abyros, constantly hitting the dragon with his Duel Disk, causing Abyros to drop the Prism in the fray. However, the malevolent Spirit was able to easily brush off the attacks, swatted away the two, and opened his mouth, unleashing a beam of white towards the duo. While Hoshiro was able to easily dodge the attack, Judai found himself in the middle of the beam, hitting him at full force. The blast was strong enough to knock him away from Abyros, gathering enough time for the dragon to recover the Prism.

"You jerk!" Judai cried out. Even at great pain, he still managed to scream at Abyros. "What are your true goals, anyway! What do you want with the Spirits!"

"_**Now, why would I tell that to you?" **_Abyros growled. _**"Neither of you would understand. Instead of trying to stop me at all costs, why don't you help me? Don't you see how trying to stop me nearly killed you?"**_

"After what you've done to Yubel and the rest of the Spirits, do you think I would actually help you!" Judai spat.

"_**See what such emotions like passion do to a weak mind? They only blur the line between what is trying to help and what is hurting you." **_Abyros said. With his tail, he swiped at the wind, forming a thin and white line, which then opened to form a portal. He glared at the duo, and tightened his grip over the Prism. He entered the portal, and disappeared within it, but the portal remained.

"_Judai, get up!" _Hoshiro encouraged. _"We need to give chase to Abyros!"_

With no hesitation, Judai struggled to remain on his two legs, and started to run towards the portal, with Hoshiro following him behind. Even if Abyros had tricked him into an illusion, it enlightened Judai to know that not all that Hoshiro said was true. It sparked a strange kind of hope within him that Yubel is still possibly alive. It was the exact kind of hope he needed to continue his quest to save the Spirits and stop Abyros. Yet what about that strange creature that tried to 'kill' him in Abyros' illusion? Was it possible that there was something else that Hoshiro nor any of the other Spirits didn't know about the Prism? Judai jumped into the portal, followed by Hoshiro, then the portal closed into a thin white line and disappeared.

* * *

><p>He will never forgive the nerve of that dragon!<p>

Johan found himself dashing through the forest, anger blazing throughout his mind and fueling him. How _dare _that Abyros separate him from his family! Such an incident was unforgivable for Johan, especially since it harmed his family. According to some Spirits, a Prism laid in a mountain range not far from here, and it was possible that this Prism contained one of his family members. With that goal to motivate him, Johan continued to charge through the forest, until he had to stop, in fear of his body giving out. "Johan, are you alright?" Cobalt Eagle asked.

Johan refused to answer. He stared at the tree in front of him, while panting heavily. That Abyros…he can never forgive that dragon! At all costs he _needed _to find the Crystal Beasts, he _needed _to find these Prisms…the thoughts seemed too much for Johan, and he finally screamed and punched at the bark. He must find the Prisms! Nobody, _absolutely nobody _can separate him from his family!

"Johan, snap out of it!" Amethyst Cat cried. "We can't find the others if you act like that!"

"We're almost to the first Prism, Johan." Topaz Tiger said in an attempt to coax the duelist into calmness. "We'll be able to find them, just keep telling yourself that."

That was good news. Not only would Johan be able to regain some of his family, but he would be able to free the Spirits too. It would slowly restore the cards back to normal, as if Johan was forming a bridge for the Spirits to return to the humans. He gazed at the eager faces of what remained of his family; Amethyst Cat, Cobalt Eagle, Topaz Tiger…the only three that did their best to resist the Prism's powers, and survived. Yet that didn't mean they weren't vulnerable, but the trio disregarded such dangers, and willingly wanted to thrust themselves in the face of dangers like Prisms. Amethyst Cat was right; he shouldn't drown himself in insanity just yet…

"_Johan! Behind you!" _Topaz Tiger screeched.

Immediately, Johan rolled to his left, barely dodging a trunk. The trees started to rustle, and animal noises filled the air. A creature reassembling Amber Mammoth appeared from the greenery, revealing itself to be the one that tried to hit Johan. It had the physical features of Amber Mammoth, but instead of a turquoise fur, its body was covered up by a dark purple mist, the only things solid were its tusks and the amber gem on its forehead. The dark creature stared at the boy with its empty glowing eyes, before it raised its trunk again in order to hit Johan. However, Topaz Tiger launched itself towards the doppelganger, interrupting its attack.

"Amber Mammoth…what happened to you?" Johan asked, distressed. "It's me, Johan! Don't you remember me…?"

The creature looked on, seemingly unmoved by the words. "I don't think that's the real Amber Mammoth, Johan." Topaz Tiger growled.

More creatures began to emerge from the trees, each having a similar trait to the Amber Mammoth creature; their bodies were all made up of a dark purple mist, and the same glowing, empty eyes. "They must have been the Spirits devoured by the Prisms!" Johan said.

"How about we go ahead and fight them?" Amethyst Cat suggested. "I think fighting them will restore them back to normal!"

"No, don't!" Johan cried. "What if this is all a trap?"

"Johan," Cobalt Eagle squawked. "I think we should _try _and fight them. They look like clones to me."

"But even if they are clones, we're outnumbered." Topaz Tiger pointed out.

The strange creatures formed a small circle around the group, snarling and hissing. These strange creatures stared at the group intently, yet they seemed to be led by the Amber Mammoth doppelganger, as none of them dared to take the first strike. Suddenly, the Amber Mammoth creature then rose up its trunk and uttered a strange, yet intimidating screech that seemed foreign and out-of-place. It stomped on the ground, creating a small cloud of dust, and then the rest of the creatures did the same and began their attack.

**A/N: A long chapter is better. Again, point out any mistakes I made in the reviews, please. I also appreciate regular reviews, you know, every author loves reviews! Anyway, Johan finding the rest of the Crystal Beasts? That's Point B of the story. It relates to the main story (Judai finding the Prisms) and influences it in rather large way. Oh, this is perhaps the last update I'll make before my school starts, but I'm hoping that I'll still get time to write. Please leave a review, authors do love reader feedback, after all. See ya!**


	3. Spirit World Medley

**A/N: Welcome to the Spirit World! Now the plot will definitely kick in! Most Duel Spirits here are monsters from the original three eras. Why all three? I kind of hinted that this entire story is set after Bonds Beyond Time. If you don't mind, there will be more western names in the Spirit World than there are eastern ones. Shall we kick in?**

**Spirit World Medley**

When Judai opened his eyes, he saw that he was no longer in the Academia; the surroundings around him were dark, and it consisted of nothing more than an endless row of trees, dulled into a dark shade of green because of the dark surroundings. The only thing that seemed to light up the world was the countless little stars that shined their little light on the realm. "Hoshiro?" Judai cried out into the night. w"Where are you, Hoshiro?"

"Oh thank goodness you're awake, I thought you had a bad landing, or some sort of coma…"

From the direction of the voice, a large serpent strolled in, bearing a striking resemblance to Hoshiro. At first, Judai thought that the dragon was an enemy, but the dragon took note of his wary looks. "Oh, so because I get transformed back to my original form means you can be all defensive?" He spat.

"You never told me that this was your true form." Judai replied.

"Assuming solid form in your world takes countless energy." Hoshiro growled. "Well, we're back in the Dark World now, I mind as well give you a grand tour."

Judai flinched. Of course, Hoshiro _did _tell him that he came from the Dark World, the very same realm that Judai oppressed during his reign as Haou. He dared not to even think about the atrocities he committed at that time, as he was able to tame that side a long time ago. He assured himself that this was all for the sake of Yubel, which meant that he could at least try to muster up the strength. After all, the Spirits won't be so quick to notice him. Hoshiro stared at Judai, as if he was irritated at the boy's idleness, and then without even a word to be spoken, Judai followed Hoshiro into the woods.

It was silent, yet it wasn't the kind of silence that meant danger was near. "You seem familiar with this place." Hoshiro started in an attempt to soothe the mood. "That just simply renders my grand tour null. Do some of these things seem to jog your memory?"

"Well, I've _sort of _been here." Judai said sheepishly.

"Sort of? What do you _mean _sort of?" Hoshiro snorted. "If you've been to a place, then that means that you've really _been _to the place! Are you playing dumb with me?"

"N-no, not at all." Judai stuttered. He couldn't risk it. He needed Hoshiro's help if he was to be reunited with Yubel, yet to do that he needed to gain Hoshiro's _trust. _This dragon, an odd Spirit who seemingly despises humans, was already suspicious of him from the start, so why should he just randomly blurt out a 'yes'? He's been to the Dark World…and controlled it all with just one wave of a hand, to boot! Certainly, nobody would say that. _Nobody._

"I want to argue with you, Judai, I _really, REALLY _want to." Hoshiro said through gritted teeth. "But right now, it's just not worth it."

"Why no-"

"JUST. NOT. WORTH. IT."

The last line was spoken with Hoshiro's same old ferocity, that kind of ferocity that seemed to be a strict demand to conclude the conversation once and for all; the same concluding tone that came from someone who tried to start a conversation. Judai simply shook it off. He had more important matters to tend to, such as Yubel's safety. Suddenly, Hoshiro halted in his tracks. An unsettling silence clouded the air, as if Hoshiro had sensed an enemy. Suddenly, the trees rustled, and a much smaller dragon appeared from the greenery. This time, it had the shade of light yellow, with wings that are quite angel-like. Its head reassembled that of a cat, with its same pointy ears and the same wide, innocuous eyes. "Shirun." Hoshiro simply said.

The dragon playfully circled the agitated Spirit. "Welcome back, Hoshiro." Shirun giggled. "You have a human with you?"

"Well, success is the least to be expected from the great Hoshiro himself." The Spirit said conceitedly. He moved to the side, revealing Judai.

"Great Hoshiro, huh?" Shirun jeered. "Oh, forget it. I'm not in the mood right now." He turned his attention towards Judai, and flashed a welcoming grin. "Did my partner's attitude scare you?" He asked suddenly.

"Er…no, not at all." Judai chuckled. "Are you…?"

"From the Vanguard Faction?" Shirun finished. "Why yes, yes I am. I'm Shirun, as you must have overheard. The utterly _fabulous _counterpart to Hoshiro, and the rightful assistant of Muyu-kon."

"The guy's a bit loony, so ignore his rants if you can." Hoshiro whispered quickly.

Judai couldn't help but utter a small chuckle. "Who's Muyu-kon?" He asked.

"The wondrous leader of the faction!" Shirun said triumphantly. "A true force to be reckoned! Even the mighty Abyros would tremble in fear of Muyu-kon's power!"

"Look, Mr. Fabulous. We've been trampled by Abyros recently, got a Prism snatched out of our grasp, and Judai here has to save someone from Abyros." Hoshiro said bluntly. "So you can quit it right now with you 'This world is so _fabulous!' _rants."

Shirun didn't seem moved by Hoshiro's words. "So the human's name is Judai?" He said curiously. "Well, no wonder I hear your arguments from a thousand miles away. Shall we make haste now? Muyu-kon does not want to wait."

The last time Judai remembered being in the Dark World, he remembered the Spirits as being malevolent and coldhearted, not bickering dragons. The duo began walking again, but this time, Shirun led the way. Along the way, Shirun endlessly chatted about what seemed to be gossip regarding the Vanguard Faction's various members, considering how he didn't recognize their names. The little dragon led them uphill, where the road became much steeper, and the seemingly endless row of trees turning into walls of stone, with Shirun's chatter becoming less frequent. Smoke filled the starry night as the trio neared the peak.

Once they did reach the summit, the trio was greeted by a small bonfire that was the source of the smoke. It seemed to be some sort of campsite, but it was empty. Hoshiro simply shook his head before he slithered around some bushes, lifting up his head to take a whiff of something in select minutes, and finally reaching a small pile of jagged leaves, each possessing a dull shade of green. The dragon casually tapped the pile with his tail. "Muyu-kon certainly gets creative day by day." He said. "How exactly do you avoid the Spirit Hymn by living in a…very obvious pitfall?"

"You don't doubt the power of the Faction, my dear." Shirun giggled.

Using his tail, Hoshiro moved away the pile, revealing some stairs leading to a bright light. First, Shirun dove in, seemingly excited than any of the other two. Next, Hoshiro went in, still cautious and annoyed by the little dragon's cheery attitude. Finally, Judai went in, who was still occupied with his thoughts about the Dark World, having only noticed the hole after he blinked to reality. As he delved deeper with the two, a scent of something sweet filled the air, which seemed to be coming from the makeshift torches that continuously lit the way, and the source of the bright light. "You know, I don't exactly picture a hideout being sweet-scented." Judai pointed out.

"Oh, you came back." Hoshiro said. "Well, our leader is eccentric, to say the least. I thought you were still thinking about that Spirit. Yubel, correct?"

"Wait, how do you know about her?" Judai asked.

"When Abyros used the Prism to put you into a trance, I heard you muttering her name." The four-winged dragon replied nonchalantly. "I'm not surprised that you actually fell for the Prism's tricks. The Spirits that the Prism devours can turn them into clones oozing with dark energy."

"Why didn't you tell me that before?"

"In all honesty, I knew you were in this for something, but I thought you were able to brush it off for the sake of the Spirits."

"Hoshiro? You, _of all people _still think that way?" Shirun piped up, stopping in his tracks in order for the duo to catch up to him. "Every goal has some sort of selfish motivation behind it. Nobody's actually being selfless in a way."

Judai couldn't help but glance at Hoshiro, who seemed rather stricken at the sentence. "Don't mind Shirun." He rasped. "You're probably here because of something, right? I'm here because of Yubel, and you probably have some sort of objective too, that can only be accomplished by stopping Abyros."

"That still supports what Shirun is trying to say." Hoshiro replied gruffly.

All chatter stopped when the three finally reached a large, wooden door. Shirun floated towards the door, and using his tail, knocked on it. It wasn't any ordinary knock, but something that sounded like a short melody. Then, the door opened as soon as Shirun finished the melody. "Well Judai, let me welcome you to the Vanguard Faction." The little dragon announced happily. "Glad to have you on board! Just don't let the members scare you off."

Scare you off? It seemed that out of all of Shirun's chatter, this seemed to be a rather nice piece of advice. The little chamber was filled with dragons frozen in statue-like poses. Judai observed each and every one of them carefully, and it seemed that these weren't really dragon statues at all; they were far too realistic to be considered one, and something about them seemed to ooze with life. The boy found himself staring at one dragon of crimson, bearing a slight resemblance to the legendary Slifer the Sky Dragon, but this was bipedal and had a dazzling, white horn placed upon its forehead. It seemed to be frozen in a stance with its mouth agape, giving it the looks of a mighty warrior. Suddenly, the dragon moved, startling Judai. "Wouru, stop it." Shirun demanded in an odd serious tone.

The dragon couldn't help but laugh. "Aw, but I wanted to attack the boy." He chuckled. "I can't really tell if he's lost in thoughts or at our extremely good acting, so I wanted to scare him to reality!"

"Wouru, the world doesn't revolve around war." Hoshiro said through gritted teeth. "Judai, meet Wouru. He's a bit battle-crazy."

The dragon let out a roar that sounded much like a hearty laugh. The other statues moved, revealing themselves to be living, breathing dragons too. The only thing that seemed out of place in the dragon-ridden chamber was a tiny orange sphere with four wings; the top two were colored with a shade of light pink on the bottom two were light purple. Its eyes seemed rather innocent like Shirun's, and there was a heart on its forehead, with two smaller hearts imprinted on its cheeks. "Way to go, Wouru." The cherub said.

"Oh, lighten up, Turu! The boy's harmless!" A dragon cried out. It was dark green, and had the legs and shape of a mantis, yet had the looks of a serpentine dragon. It had a pair of crescent-shaped metal on each side of its tail, with six dragonfly-like wings dotting its body. "At least Hoshiro didn't fail you this time!"

Turu descended towards Judai's eye-level, and studied him cautiously. The cherub backed away in shock. "_Haou!" _He gasped. He then turned towards Hoshiro with anger. "You brought back _HAOU!" _He bellowed.

"How do you know if he's Haou?" Hoshiro barked back. "Sure he may have his physical resemblance, but he can't be Haou _entirely."_

"No, but I do sense a strangely high amount of energy emanating from this…boy." Turu replied. The cherub began to stir, milling about and spouting various incoherent sentences. Finally, he stared at Judai furiously. Neither of the two spoke, and tension hung in the air as Turu let out a small growl.

"I'm not who you think I am." Judai finally said, breaking the silence. "Yes, I may be Haou, but I was wrong back then. I didn't mean to-"

"Apologies, apologies!" Turu snapped. "Sure, some of the Spirits might have forgiven you, but not me! Just because you got a change of eye color does not mean you're out scotch-free. I don't suppose you truly regret what you've done, do you?"

Judai found himself unable to retort. Suddenly, the same green dragon butted in, shoving Turu aside. "Don't let the cherub fool you." He said, hoping to ease the situation. "He's the right-hand man of this whole faction anyway."

"Hamazu!" Turu cried.

"Oh, let Hamazu ease the pain." Wouru laughed. "It's one of these times where talking is much better than fighting to the death!"

"I'm not going to forgive Haou!" Turu protested. "You guys might have a change of heart, but I won't! No matter how many times he performs good deeds I will ne-"

"He's here!" Shirun interrupted. "Muyu-kon is here!"

A small blue dragon waltzed in, with the same bulging, innocent eyes that Judai had seen enough for today. Two smaller, crimson dots were on each side of his eyes, and the pair seemed to blink at the same time with the dragon's own wide eyes. With his tiny arms, he carried around a small flower; Judai believed it was called a periwinkle flower. Following the dragon was a pure white serpent that had the visible features of a dragon, but didn't seem to be a pure-blooded dragon at all. Its face had two long golden strands of hair, making it look like wind chimes, and the same golden strands were its mane, albeit much larger. Black, ritualistic-like markings dotted the serpent's body as it slithered alongside the dragon with great authority. "Looks like Turu is being a mini Hoshiro again." The serpent moaned.

"_Excuse me!" _Hoshiro barked. "I was just here for a few minutes and this is what I'm treated with! Do you even notice the _human standing right next to me!"_

"No respect Hoshiro, no respect." Wouru laughed.

The blue dragon walked up to Judai, studying him much like what Turu did before. Suddenly, the dragon bolted out his flower, tickling Judai. The boy found himself laughing, despite the fact that he was trying his very hardest to stay serious and remain focused on his goal, but the dragon didn't seem to stop. Finally, the flower bothered Judai no more, yet he still felt slight back pain because of the long tickling session. "He doesn't feel like Haou, kon." The dragon told Turu. "Haou wouldn't be able to laugh, kon."

"WHAT! That's IT!" Turu blurted out. "Muyu-kon, I am not one to go against you but really! _You judge a human by TICKLING HIM!"_

"You cannot argue with Muyu-kon's wisdom." Shirun pointed out.

"Yes, I for one believe our leader's words." The serpent added.

"GUYS! He. Just. Tickled. Him!" Turu said, angered.

"Muyu-kon," The serpent said, ignoring Turu. "We should go ahead and begin."

"Oh! Of course, Gazedi! Kon!" Muyu-kon said. The dragon let out a wide grin, and rose up his flower high, silencing the laughter. "Your name, kon?" He asked, turning around to look at Judai.

"Judai." The boy replied. "You're uh…Muyu-kon?"

"You can call me Muyu though, kon!"

Judai nodded, a slight grin prying upon his lips. "Nice to meet you then, Muyu." He chuckled.

Suddenly, Muyu-kon turned towards the rest of the faction. "Are you all ready, kon?" He announced. "Ifiel and Rallis are still out there, and they reported that they had found a Prism, kon!"

"Thing is, the Spirit Hymn has also found the Prism, too." Gazedi continued. "If we don't hurry up, we risk losing _another _Prism." She then turned around to Judai. "And please, be nice to Judai here. He's still getting used to our way of life. Don't want to scare another human out, do we?"

It amazed Judai how the group managed to retain such colorful personalities in such a dark time. Yet something stuck out in Gazedi's sentence; another human? They had another human, too? "What do you mean _another human?" _He asked the serpent.

"Oh, he was a fairly tall fellow, acted exactly like you. Had blue hair, and a Pegasus, tiger, and cat following him around."

"Johan!"

"Are you two paying attention, kon?" Muyu snapped.

Johan…he was here? Judai was deep in thought once more, with Muyu and Gazedi's words becoming more than soft murmurs in his mind. He could only blame Hoshiro for this whole debacle. He then lifted up his head and stared at the four-winged dragon, who seemed to fight right in with the mostly dragon crowd. Judai doubt Hoshiro even noticed him looking, since the dragon was too busy debating with the other two leaders. Part of Judai simply wanted to choke Hoshiro for dragging Johan in this. Yet he managed to calm himself with the fact that the whole reason he was here to pursue Yubel.

"…And Judai shall be with Turu, Wouru, and Hoshiro. You four are going to have to find Rallis and Ifiel without attracting attention from the Spirit Hymn." Gazedi announced.

"What! With Haou!" Turu protested.

"I doubt he'll bite, Turu." Hamazu jeered. "Judai looks like an interesting young man."

Hoshiro, Wouru, or Judai didn't seem to complain too much. Wouru was mostly excited for the fact that he would be able to fight, Hoshiro had an expression that simply seemed to indicate that he didn't wanted to be part of this mess, and Judai thought that this would be a step closer to the first Prism.

* * *

><p>"Where are they!" Rallis hissed. The bird stomped around, flapping his bright orange wings in fury. "Does Muyu-kon want to risk getting another Prism out of our grasp?"<p>

"Wouru did say Hoshiro was coming back with a human today." A sphere of green pointed out.

"Honestly, who trusts Wouru!" Rallis said. "All that goes on in that dragon's mind is war…and more war!"

"Pipe down, Rallis. I think I see someone out there!"

"Hey there!" Wouru roared.

"Do you have to be so loud?" Turu complained.

"How else are they gonna hear us!"

"You two!" Hoshiro snarled.

"Stay out of this, Hoshiro!" Wouru snapped.

As the three bickered about, Judai squinted his eyes, getting a good look on who these two other members are. One was a bird with a long, yellow tail that reassembled those that belonged to horses. Its top body was somewhat protected by purple armor that covered the bottom of his neck, some of his wings, and held the crest of a golden star. His head was also protected by a green helmet with a white feather on top. The bird also had another pair of wings that had a row of white squares attached to it. The other was a tiny green sphere with round, blue eyes, and brown angelic wings.

"So this is the human. Impressive." The bird said. "My name is Rallis, and my buddy here is Ifiel. Official field agents of the Vanguard Faction!"

"My name's Judai." The brunette replied. "Say, you didn't happen to see a blue-haired guy around here, did you?"

"Nope!" Ifiel chirped. "Didn't see one thing when we got here."

Judai found himself deep in thought once more. First Yubel, now Johan? He was completely torn in his thoughts, arguing within his mind on who was more important; Yubel or Johan. But Muyu also pointed out that Johan was not alone, for he had Sapphire Pegasus, Amethyst Cat, and Topaz Tiger following him around. Surely, Johan would be fine. He didn't want to have another mess in his hands to deal with.

"Hey! Look who came in at the right time!"

Another creature reassembling a dragon hopped out from one of the trees, but this one was clearly more muscular, and only possessed one eye, and no legs. Following it was a herd of horned eyeballs that looked like bats. The dragon lifted up his head to look at the group before letting out one hearty laugh. "How the heck did you guys get Haou!" He jeered. "You want to die so fast, do ya?"

"You don't amuse me at all; Ghauder so let me get straight to the beat." Turu snarled, breaking off the argument. "You either get out of my face or get the beating of your lifetime!"

"Aw, c'mon!" Ghauder whined. "The folks back at the Hymn aren't that bad! Thing is, they asked me to kill you guys. Real mean guys, right!"

"You sure have a way of annoying people, Ghauder. Can't wait to beat you up." Hoshiro told him bluntly.

"Gee, fine! Don't listen to my words! Let's get straight to the fight! The nerve of you guys…"

Ghauder let out a primal screech, and teleported all over the place in an erratic fashion. In each place he teleported upon, a new, darker copy of himself was left there, until Ghauder had produced a plethora of clones. "Well, Judai, do you know how to fight without cards?" Hoshiro asked.

Judai readied his Duel Disk, but he didn't activate it. "Sure I do, why's that?" He asked Hoshiro.

"Cause we're about to beat up some annoying dragon."

**A/N: Judai is sort of a back seat character right now just so you guys can get to know the Vanguard Faction. Next chapter, he'll talk more, I promise. Until then, see ya!**


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